opentrack

Free head tracking software

opentrack turns natural head movement into smooth, six-degrees-of-freedom camera control. It is an open-source head-tracking app for flight simulators and games - use a webcam, infrared clip, joystick or phone, then send tracking to Microsoft Flight Simulator, X-Plane, DCS World and more.

Download for WindowsSee how it works

Free download · opentrack 2026.1.0 · Windows installer (.exe)

Free & open source No account needed Windows, Linux & macOS

Look around naturally - hands stay on the controls

Instead of a hat switch or mouse, opentrack maps your head to six axes of in-game movement. Small real movements can be scaled into larger virtual ones.

YawTurn your view left and right
PitchLook up and down
RollTilt your head side to side
XLean left and right
YMove up and down
ZLean forward and back

Built for flight sim and head-tracked gaming

opentrack is made for people who want responsive, configurable tracking - not a closed, single-brand hardware kit.

Flight simulation

Scan the cockpit, follow the runway through a turn and check your six in MSFS, X-Plane and FlightGear without ever moving your hands off the yoke.

Combat & military games

Track targets and keep situational awareness in DCS World and IL-2 Sturmovik. Steep outer curves let you look behind without a huge head turn.

Space & vehicle sims

Glance at panels, line up a docking port and watch your wingman in Star Citizen, Elite Dangerous and other cockpit games.

Webcam tracking

No infrared hardware required. The NeuralNet AI tracker reads your head pose from an ordinary webcam, or print a paper ArUco marker.

Custom & DIY rigs

Build your own tracker with an Arduino and Hatire firmware, stream from a phone over UDP, or map analog joystick axes to head movement.

How opentrack works

Every setup is three swappable parts. Change any one of them without rebuilding the whole system.

1

Tracking input

Pick how opentrack measures your head: a webcam, an infrared point clip, an eye tracker, a phone, a joystick or a microcontroller.

2

Filtering & mapping

Shape the raw data with per-axis response curves, smoothing, deadzones and limits so small real movements become natural in-game movement.

3

Game or sim output

Send the result through the protocol your game expects - SimConnect, FreeTrack, X-Plane, a virtual joystick, SteamVR or UDP to another PC.

See opentrack in action

A quick look at head tracking driving the in-game camera in a flight simulator.

Tracking inputs for every setup

From a plain webcam to a custom infrared rig, opentrack supports a wide range of tracking hardware and software.

PointTracker (infrared)

Low-latency optical tracking with an IR or visible-light clip and a compatible camera.

NeuralNet (webcam AI)

AI head-pose estimation from a plain webcam - no clip, no marker, no extra hardware.

ArUco paper marker

Print a fiducial marker and track it with any webcam through the ArUco library.

Joystick axes

Map analog joystick or HOTAS axes to head movement on Windows.

Arduino & Hatire

Stream from a DIY inertial tracker running Hatire-compatible firmware.

Phone over UDP

Send tracking from a mobile app or another PC over the network with the opentrack UDP protocol.

Eye trackers

Use Tobii hardware or Eyeware Beam as a head-tracking input source.

VR & motion devices

Bring in Oculus Rift, XREAL One, Razer Hydra or Intel RealSense as a tracker.

Outputs for the games you play

Processed tracking is sent through the exact protocol your game or simulator expects.

Microsoft Flight Simulator

SimConnect output for current MSFS versions on Windows.

FreeTrack

The FreeTrack-compatible interface used by a huge range of games - a drop-in TrackIR replacement.

X-Plane

Connect through the X-Plane plugin, including Wine setups on Linux.

FlightGear

Send head-tracking data straight to the open-source FlightGear simulator.

Virtual joystick

Turn head movement into a virtual joystick on Windows, Linux and macOS.

SteamVR bridge

Drive SteamVR through the separate OpenVR-OpenTrack bridge on Windows.

FSUIPC

Support legacy Microsoft Flight Simulator 2002 and 2004 through FSUIPC.

UDP relay

Forward tracking to another computer over your local network.

Precise control for every axis

Head tracking is personal. Tune each axis to your camera, seating distance, display and tracker.

Response curves

Decide how much virtual movement each axis produces - fine near the center, fast at the edges.

Deadzones

Ignore tiny involuntary movement so the view stays rock-steady when you hold still.

Smoothing & filters

Cut jitter and noise while keeping the camera responsive, with filters tuned per tracker.

Centering

Bind a key to instantly reset your neutral viewing position at any time.

Axis limits

Cap rotation or translation to keep movement inside a comfortable range.

Axis inversion

Flip any axis when your tracker, mounting or game expects the opposite direction.

Use the hardware you already own

A dedicated commercial tracking kit is not required. opentrack works with all of these:

A standard webcam with the NeuralNet AI tracker A webcam plus a printed ArUco marker A camera with a three-point infrared LED clip An Arduino-based inertial tracker A supported eye tracker (Tobii, Eyeware Beam) A phone streaming over UDP Analog joystick or HOTAS axes

Windows, Linux and macOS

opentrack runs on all three desktop platforms, with Windows getting the most complete support.

Windows

Recommended

The primary platform. Installer and portable packages with the broadest selection of trackers, output protocols and device integrations.

GNU/Linux

Supported

Supported in the codebase, including virtual joystick, Wine, UDP and simulator workflows. Build requirements vary by distribution.

macOS

Unmaintained

macOS support exists but is currently unmaintained. Compatibility depends on your system version, build environment and chosen modules.

Open source and community-built

opentrack is maintained by contributors with backgrounds in tracking systems, computer vision, hardware and control theory. It grew out of the earlier FaceTrackNoIR project, was almost entirely rewritten, and today is maintained by Stanisław Halik. Almost all of the code is distributed under the permissive ISC license - you can read it, build it and extend it.

Learn more about the project and how to contribute →

Frequently asked questions

Is opentrack free?

Yes. opentrack is completely free and open source under the permissive ISC license. There is no account, trial or paid version - download it and start tracking.

What is opentrack used for?

opentrack converts your real head movement into in-game camera control across six degrees of freedom (yaw, pitch, roll and three lean axes). It is built for flight simulators, combat and space games, and any application that supports a compatible tracking protocol.

Do I need TrackIR or special hardware?

No. A regular webcam works with the built-in NeuralNet AI tracker. You can also use an infrared point clip, an eye tracker, a joystick, a phone over UDP, or a DIY Arduino tracker - opentrack works with hardware you probably already own.

Is opentrack a free TrackIR alternative?

Effectively, yes. opentrack speaks the FreeTrack protocol used by most head-tracking games, so it can replace a TrackIR setup using a webcam or a simple infrared clip.

Does opentrack work with Microsoft Flight Simulator?

Yes. opentrack sends tracking to Microsoft Flight Simulator through SimConnect, and to X-Plane and FlightGear through their own outputs. Games such as DCS World, IL-2 Sturmovik, Star Citizen and Elite Dangerous work through the FreeTrack output.

Which operating systems are supported?

Windows is the primary, best-supported platform. Linux is supported in the codebase, and macOS support exists but is currently unmaintained.

How accurate is webcam head tracking?

The NeuralNet tracker estimates head pose from an ordinary webcam and is good enough for everyday flying. For the lowest latency and the most stable tracking, an infrared point clip with PointTracker is the popular choice.

Can I adjust the sensitivity?

Yes. Each of the six axes has its own response curve, deadzone, smoothing, limits and inversion, so you can tune fine aiming near the center and fast glances at the edges independently.

How do I set opentrack up?

Install or extract opentrack, choose a Tracking input, choose the Output protocol your game uses, confirm the tracker sees your movement, set your curves and a filter, assign a Center key, then start the game and refine the profile.

Is opentrack safe to install?

opentrack is open source and its code is public, and the download here points to the official GitHub release. Because it is a small, frequently updated download, Windows SmartScreen or some antivirus tools may show a generic warning - this is a known false positive.

Does it support eye trackers or VR devices?

Yes. Tobii eye trackers, Eyeware Beam, Oculus Rift, XREAL One, Razer Hydra and Intel RealSense can all be used as tracking inputs on supported platforms.

Where can I get help with setup?

Start with the opentrack Wiki for setup and tuning guides. If you have a question about this site or its guides, you can reach us by email from the contact page.

Download opentrack

Free and open source. Start with the hardware you already have and look around naturally in your favorite flight sim or game.

Download for WindowsRead the setup guide